


Firefly

by Tenebrous



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Blood and Gore, College Student Eren Yeager, Eren is only female in the past life, Multi, Reincarnation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-13
Updated: 2015-04-13
Packaged: 2018-03-22 17:49:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3737953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tenebrous/pseuds/Tenebrous
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>-On Hiatus. Will Return Spring 2018-<br/>“No matter what. I’ll come back to you, I promise.” </p><p>When Levi was only 14 years old, he lost the most precious person he had ever had in his life along with his two best friends. It was a blow he never quite recovered from. 19 Years later, as a History Professor at a University, he sees a boy enter his class as a freshman. He is instantly floored. A different gender, but there was no doubt. “Eren…”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Firefly

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, yes, I know, another fic when my first one is nowhere near done. But heyo, I couldn't help it.  
> Anyway, Eren won't stay female, no worries there.

     The ancient legends of fireflies are quite numerous. The most accepted being the Japanese legend of souls; the tale infers that each firefly light is a soul of the deceased.

It had just seemed so surreal and magical, that it might even be true. Especially to Levi Ackerman at 14 years old, on that dark night in 1996. 

* * *

 

     

      It was a quiet summer night on a long country stretch of road. Fireflies danced about among the pine trees that lined the sides. The moon was at waxing crescent, and the stars twinkled above in approval. It was peaceful, with the only sounds being the chirping of crickets, the whirring of cicadas, and the occasional dog bark. The music of the night was in full symphony; the harmony was perfect, until it was rudely interrupted.

      A little Volvo sped around a turn, tires squealing a bit. Lights cutting through the darkness. Four figures were illuminated in the car's cabin by the blue-green glow of the buttons on the dash. The windows were rolled down to half mast and music poured from them, seeping into the forest.

      "Jesus, Farlan! Be more careful! You want us to be another stupid statistic?" Eren snapped from the back seat. Her eyebrows were furrowed and her golden eyes were narrowed with disapproval. 

      "Eren, it's fine, I know what I'm doing, I'm the one with the driver's licence, here. This is not the first time I've nabbed my Dad's car. " Farlan leaned back in his seat. "Even though Levi has to mouth off every single time...but I still think he secretly enjoys it."

      Levi had been particularly adamant about the little joyride that had been scheduled for that night, but Eren and Isabel had finally convinced him to go; their large, almond shaped, eyes had been in full puppydog mode.

      Levi snaked his arm around Eren's waist.

      Eren turned and whispered gently. " _You are having fun, right?_ " 

      "It's better than sitting at home doing nothing, I guess."

      "Atta boy!" Eren leaned in and kissed his cheek and nuzzled into his neck. Her short cropped hair (She had cut it herself) stuck out in boyish bed-head tufts and tickled Levi’s ear. Her breath was hot, and he felt teeth graze his collar bone.

      He was glad his blush was hidden in the dim light of the car.

      “Aren’t you glad that we did this, now, ya uptight baby?” Isabel, Eren's fraternal twin sister, grinned, and turned back to look at Levi from the front seat.

       Eren snapped away from him faster than a mouse trap hinge, probably blushing furiously.

      Levi gave a half-hearted glare at Isabel for interrupting, and pulled Eren closer to him. "Shut-up Isabel, and pick a better station. This one is terrible, we've had to hear The Macarena 5 times in the last hour." 

      "Oh, come now!" Farlan chimed in. "That song is fun, besides, this is a celebration! You guys made it through your first year of high school, my baby bees!"

      "Farlan, you're only a year and a half older than us." Levi said, bored. He leaned into the cushion of the back seat and adjusted his seatbelt.

      "Exactly!" Farlan fiddled with the rolling crank on his window, moving it up halfway. (His hair was getting a bit too windswept for his tastes.)"You two got to skip a grade and be with me in the glorious cesspool of high school! So, with you two lovebirds under my experienced wing, you survived your first year."

       Isabel glowered a bit at her reflection in the passenger seat window. Staring at the occasional street light that the rural town had bothered to put up. "I still don't see why you guys got to skip a grade and I didn't...it's not fair!" She stuck out her lip in a bit of a pout.

      "...'Cause you're stupid." Both Eren and Farlan said in tandem. Their eyes met in the rear-view mirror after saying it at the same time and they both burst out laughing.

      "Shut up, dykey!” Isabel sputtered at her sister.

      “Looks like someone is mad cuz they’re so _stuuuuupid!_ ” Eren cooed in a singsong voice, not deterred in the least by the insult.

      “I AM NOT!" Isabel was downright pissed. Her big green eyes turned a bit shiny and she turned to glare at them both.

      "Are too!" Eren jabbed back. "Plus, you're technically younger than me!"

      "What?! By like 5 minutes!" 

      "Come on, ladies, let’s be nice!" Farlan said with a grin.

      Eren ignored him to put forth her final zinger."Yeah, well, maybe if you'd studied for five more minutes, you'd have passed the high school entrance exam." Eren looked smug.

      "..." Isabel had no retort. She grabbed one of her pigtails and chewed on the tip.

      Farlan and Eren broke out into quiet giggles at her flustered defeat. 

      Levi looked at his best friend in the driver's seat, and his girlfriend next to him as their shoulders shook with suppressed laughter. Geez, and they called him the mean one? He turned his grey eyes to the front passenger's seat. "Hey, Isabel."

      She ignored him and sniffled a bit.

      He continued anyway, despite the unwarranted silent treatment. "Just 'cause you didn't get into high school early like us...it doesn't mean you're stupid." 

      Isabel whipped her head back and looked him in the eye. "Stop it. You're just saying that. I'm not too stupid to see  _that_."

      Levi didn't back down. "I'm not just saying that. I'm serious." He put a hand through his hair in frustration. "Look, it's not like some dumb sheet of paper can really judge how smart a person's entire brain is.  _That_  would be stupid."

      In the meantime, the other two slowly stopped their revelry, they grew quiet, having realized a bit late that their jokes had gone a smidge too far. 

      Isabel seemed to ponder this. She chewed her pigtail a moment more before responding. "...you're right." She flicked her pigtail back over her shoulder. "Yeah, you're totally right! One lame test can't judge jack about me or my brain." She turned back to looking out the window at the night sky, a small smile on her face.

      Levi turned to look at Eren, who was sheepishly not meeting his eyes. He whispered in her ear. “ _You know what I’m gonna say.”_

      “ _Yeah…_ ” Eren whispered back, sounding downright ashamed. _“That I should be nicer to my sister or whatever. I know._ ”

      Levi cupped her chin in his hands and looked at her until her eyes met his own. Her eyes were so beautiful, like liquid gold, so full of fire, he couldn’t really stay angry with them. “ _Yeah. You really should. You two can be such brats to each other. It’s just ridiculous._ ”

      “ _I know. I love her though, you know that…and I love you._ ” Eren swallowed. “ _More than anything._ ”

      Levi pulled one of his rarer cards and smiled. It was always worth it to see Eren light up just a little in excitement. “ _Well, not to sound cheesy, but I love you too and all._ ”

      Eren didn’t say a word, just leaned forward and kissed him.

      It was no girl-scout kiss by any means. No innocence, just desire and passion. Her scent was intoxicating. He deepened the kiss and smiled into it.

      “Hey love birds-“ Isabel started.

      A loud blast from outside and the car violently jerking to the side interrupted her. Isabel's head smacked the half open window with an audible thunk.

      “Oh SHIT!” Farlan tried to correct the careening vehicle, but to no avail. The screeching tires mirrored the screams coming from both Isabel and Eren as the ditch on the side of the road suddenly loomed in the headlights.  

      Levi had enough mind to turn his body and pull Eren close to him. He did his best to sheild her with his upper body. With a sickening lurch of his stomach and a terrible feeling of weightlessness, the car collided with the bank. The impact was greater than he could have imagined. Eren was ripped from his arms. The seat in front of him came rapidly forward and smashed into his face. The world spun over and over and over. He heard Isabel's squeals loudly for a moment and then found them to abruply end. The lights from the dash glowing ever present. He saw a leg and a shoe go past his face. The foliage on the side of the road lit up by the headlights seemed to turn like a record. The scream of twisting metal barraged his ears, shattered glass lacerated his arms and face. Stars were exploding in front of his eyes. It was all too much. Too much.

      As soon as it had begun, it was over.  Levi's ears were ringing, his head ached, his left arm that had wrapped tightly around Eren lay limply by his head at an odd angle. He had enough presence of mind to groan and open his eyes. Everything was still except for the car's engine, which ran, though choppy, and the music that continued to come out of the radio. He vaguely took note that it was U2. The headlights shown out into the woods, which was curiously upside-down. It occured to him that, _no_ that was _moronic_ , the car was upside down.

     He was being held to the seat by his seat belt, thus Levi was also, uncomfortably, upside-down. He tried to reach over with his left arm to un-buckle it, only to find that it wouldn't move. 'It must be broken...' he thought. Which was odd, since he couldn't feel any pain. He reached up with his right arm instead, and undid the buckle, vaguely aware that there was glass sticking in his fingers and palms. With an "Ooof!" He landed on the ceiling of the car in an ungraceful heap. He sat up, trying to make his head focus and stop spinning.

      Farlan. Isabel.  _Eren._ He rapidly looked around him. The car was completely empty. "W-what?" He said weakly in confusion, his voice coming out in a painful whine that was foreign to his ears. 'Did they leave me here?' He reached over and undid the latch that opened the door, only to realize that the window that would normally have been in his way was completely gone. Ignoring the mounting pain that seemed to be forming in his left arm and shoulder, Levi scooted out of the car, leaving a small trail of smeared blood from his cut up hands. When he finally managed to roll out successfully, he found himself on all fours in several inches of water. 'What?' He looked around, he was in the ditch by the road. 'Gross...'  He tried to cradle his wounded arm as best he could. He staggered for a moment on one knee and them managed a weak and wobbly stance. He looked around and peered into the darkness.

      Farlan's Dad was gonna be so, so, pissed. That volvo was his baby, and it was definitely totaled. It's back left tire was gone, only a dented wheel remained. The entire front bumper was half torn off. It had come to a rest upside-down in the ditch beside the road, with all its windows broken, its frame bent, and its whole body dented far from its original boxy shape. Farlan. Where were they? "Eren? Isabel? Farlan?" He asked into the night.

      The crickets and cicadas were his only answer.

      His mind cleared a bit more. This was bad. Levi began to shake almost uncontrollably. He scrambled up the edge of the ditch, holding his busted arm as best he could. Once at the top, Levi could see beyond the other side of the car. A lone shabby street light flickered and buzzed about a hundred feet back on the road. It gave him enough light to guide him through the accident. He almost wished it hadn't.

      "I-Isabel!" He could see her body laying in the grass, limp, and very oddly splayed. The street light cast a pale orange tint to her skin. He hurried over, hobbling as fast as he could. "Isa-!" He was cut off as he tripped and fell, landing awkwardly, with pain exploding in his arm. "Sh-shit...." In his haste, he had failed to notice that something had been in his path. He turned back to go towards Isabel, continuing to hobble over. He could try CPR or something, anything, anything. He reached her, and stopped dead. Colour drained from his face.

      Where her neck should have been, a small nub of thoracic vertebra poked out grimly from twised and torn flesh. Two collar bones stuck out awkwardly as if reaching for the connective tissue and neck that was no longer there. "N-No...." He looked back behind him...If that was...then what had he tripped over...? "No....no no no no..." 

      Her severed head lay in the grass, a good portion of her neck still attached, a look of horror still painted on her pained face. Orange light glinted on her glassy eyes that still leaked tears, yet could no longer see. "oh-god-ohgodohgod." Levi retched and vomited right there in the ditch. This wasn't happening. 

      He lurched away. 'Farlan and Eren! They had to be ok!' With wild eyes, Levi staggered further down the road, following the tire marks and the trail of wreckage.

      He spotted Farlan much faster than he had spotted Isabel. The bright red of his blood was a dead giveaway. He was lying face down, in the bottom of the ditch, his organs were just a big pile of human jenga gone wrong. His legs were no where to be seen. His neck was twisted at an unholy angle.

      Levi turned away. He heard a strange moaning cry, like some strange animal. It took him a moment to realize that the sound was coming from his own throat. He made no effort to stop it. He bit into his hand, and the shaking began to worsen. 

      " _Levi?_ "

      He looked up sharply. Had he imagined it? 

  _Eren!_

" _L-Levi_!." The voice was undoubtedly Eren's. But it was so weak, and held so much pain. 

      He followed the sound to the edge of the woods. There, in a bed of leaves and shrubs, lay Eren. His Eren. The soul he loved, more than anything. The one who he'd been inseparable with since early childhood. 

       Levi bounded across the ditch with new found strength and rushed to Eren's side. "Eren! Eren! H-hey!" He looked down at her. The majority of Eren's left leg was torn away, a heavily bleeding stump was all that remained. He could see so much. Too much, every layer of flesh. Skin, fat, fascia, muscle and bone. The blood pumped out rapidly in thick spurts. Her right arm had also been severed right behind the elbow. It was really bad. So bad, he had to keep himself from tearing his eyes away. He couldn't let Eren know.

       Eren just smiled weakly up at him. She looked pale. Too pale. " _I know, it's...."_ She gasped a bit for air " _..it's bad."_ She finished with an apologetic smile.

      "No, no." Levi ripped off his shirt and tied it around the stump of Eren's left leg. There was so much blood.... "I'm here now, you're gonna be ok."

      " _Levi?...I'm s-sorry..."_ Eren's voice was fading fast, her breathing growing ever more shallow. He could barely hear her.

      "Eren, no, Eren, you're gonna be ok." He frantically pushed with as much pressure as he could muster with one working arm.

      Her voice was nothing but a breathy whisper now. " _No matter what. I'll come back to you, I promise."_

A massive amount of fireflies flew all around him, suddenly, and flew as a colony, in to the sky. Levi watched entranced for just a moment.

 _"_ Eren, you aren't going anywhere, you don't have to promise anything!" Levi stilled. Listening. Eren was no longer breathing. He checked for her pulse.

      That wild untamable heart no longer beat.

      Impossible. 

      He'd just taken a CPR course with her last week. He pushed hard on her chest, tilted her head to the proper angle and tried to get her to breathe. He repeated the steps. Again...and Again...and again....he lost count. He leaned down again and listened to her chest, her soft breasts which had once brought him so much pleasure, were now only in the way of hearing her heart. Not that it mattered. 

      Levi leaned down and whined like a feral dog. He cradled Eren in his arms and cried to the sky and each and every firefly that passed. He was being so loud. Why weren't the stars falling out of the sky. Couldn't they hear him? Could Eren?

      Eren. 

_Eren._

It was literally too much. Everything was just too much. His mind couldn't even process the absolute, life-shattering horror. Finally, as if the universe took pity on him, Levi began to slump over into unconsciousness. He was vaguely aware of a pair of headlights slowing to a stop on the nearby road. He didn't even question the cries of terror, or the rapid slamming of car doors. He could barely feel arms around him, a voice, trying to reach him. It all slowed and dimmed more and more, until everything in his reality came to a stop. The sweet mother of true oblivion enveloped him in her gentle embrace.

* * *

 

   

      The aftermath of the 'Brookside Road-Way Disaster', as the incident would later be called, shook the small community in which it had occurred. According to the local News Paper, four teenagers had taken a parent-owned car out for a joyride in the late night hours. Trouble had arisen from a blown back tire. The car, which had been traveling in excess of 70 miles per hour, was over corrected by the young, and inexperienced driver at the wheel. The car had drifted momentarily before regaining traction and then careened diagonally into the ditch by the side of the road. The odd angle, and high speed of the vehicle caused the car to roll multiple times. Of all the persons in the car, only one, a 14 year-old local male, who was in the back seat, had been wearing a seat belt. The other three were thrown from the vehicle. The back passenger wearing the seatbelt had only mild contusions and a broken arm. Death was instantaneous for the driver and front seat passenger. The other passenger in the back had their femoral artery severed, and despite valiant aid from the surviving passenger, passed on only minutes after the crash. A small memorial was to be erected at the site. The survivor was to recover with family. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Idk, why, but this somehow does not make any sense to a lot of people for whatever reason...but...BUCKLE YOUR GODDAMN SEAT-BELTS...and yes, I have been in a car crash before. Several, actually, only one of which was technically my fault. (I was 17 at the time, and inexperienced with the whole driving thing.) No matter what, though, they are NOT. PLEASANT. Especially in cars without airbags. I flew forward so hard in one crash (not my fault that time), that I broke my nose on the steering wheel. Shit hurt. I also got cut up pretty bad, and apparently (according to my friend who was in the car too, at the time), I was so out of it and confused from smashing my face on the steering wheel, that I tried to run away (waddle awkwardly) from the paramedics who were trying to get a look at the cuts on my legs.


End file.
